Wire cutter tension device



Aug. 7, 1 956 WIRE CUTTER TENSION DEVICE Filed June 8. 1954 IN VEN TOR.

J. RITTGERS 2,757,904

United States Patent O WIRE CUTTER TENSION DEVICE John Rittgers, Union Furnace, Ohio, assignor to Natco Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application June 8, 1954, Serial No. 435,149

1 Claim. (Cl. 254-161) This invention relates to a tool for use in adjusting the tension of cutting wires used in cutting clay for the making of burnt tile or brick. In the manufacture of brick and tile it is customary to use wire such as piano wire or the like to cut a mass of clay into the desired sizes prior to burning of the clay in making either brick or tile. This tool will be useful in adjusting the tension of cutting wires for any dense, bulky product whose weight will require considerable adjustment of the cutting wire. Accordingly, the primary object of the invention is the provision of a tool for this purpose which is simple in design, economical to construct and which is capable of adjusting tension of cutting wires with less skill and effort required on the part of the operator. The further object of this invention is to provide a tool which is easily moved and positioned at a location close to the ends of the cutting wires of the clay cutting device. These and other objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent from the consideration of the drawings and the following detailed specifications wherein there is disclosed a specific or brief embodiment of the invention in the drawings:

Figure 1 is the side view of the tool.

Figure 2 is an end view showing a cutting wire in position.

Figure 3 is an end section view taken along the lines 3-3 on Figure 1 showing the internal structure of the tool.

Figure 4 is a longitudinal section taken along the lines 4-4 of Fig. 3.

Referring to Figures 1 and 2, it will be seen that the tool consists of a retaining ring 2 having a tap hole 3 in alignment with a tap hole 3a in an inner sleeve element 4 for attaching a ring to a shaft element A which forms a convenient support for the tool. It is to be understood, however, that any convenient support means may be used, such as providing a base or clamp on the outside of retaining ring 2 or another type of internal support serving a function similar to shaft A. On the inside of fixed ring 2 is a sleeve 4 which has an axis that is co-axial with the axis of the retaining ring 2. This sleeve member 4 is shown as a hollow member, although, of course, the internal construction of this sleeve will depend on the type of support member used for the retaining ring. Internal sleeve 4 extends to the right, as shown in Figure 1, from the inside bore of retaining ring 2 co-axi-ally through the bore of an adjacent wire holder adjusting ring 6, which is adapted to be rotated with respect to the internal sleeve. Sleeve member 4 has provided an extended rim 14 which overlaps one end of the rotatable wire holder adjusting ring and maintains the rotatable wire holder ring in abutting relation to the side of the retaining ring 2. Sleeve member 4 is also provided with a reduced eccentric portion 5 that forms a cam track with the inner cylindrical surface of adjusting ring 6 for a wedge roller 20. The cam track extends almost around the circumference of the sleeve 4 and gradually cuts deeper in the sleeve circumference until the 7 2,757,904 Patented Aug. 7, 1956 '2 deepest portion of the track is reached in the vicinity of pin 16. It is to be noted the circumference of sleeve member 4 is also provided with a tap hole at 3a so that the same set screw 3b used in tap hole 3 may be used to fix both the retaining ring 2 and the sleeve 4 to the shaft A. The wire holder adjusting ring 6 is provided with an external groove 10 which will receive perhaps a half turn of the cutter wire which engages the rotatable ring and is attached to a pin 12 as clearly shown in Figure 2. Therotatable ring 6 is also provided with a convenient lever 8 whereby the operator may easily adjust the annular position of the wire holder adjusting ring and thereby vary the tension in cutter wire B.

Sleeve 4 has a fixed pin 16 positioned at the center of the cam track passing through the extended rim 14. As shown in Figs. 2 and cross-section 3, pin 16 is in the space formed by the eccentric portion of sleeve 4 and therefore serves as an abutment for spring 18 which biases wedge roller 20 in an operative position between the sleeve and the internal part of the rotatable wire holder adjusting ring. Although cam 20 is shown as a roller, this element may be a ball bearing in a narrower cam track.

The operation of the wire tension device in the form described is as 'follows:

First, the retaining ring 2 and sleeve 4 are attached to a shaft near the cutting wire B by means of set screw 3b which extends through both members. Wire holder adjusting ring 6 is rotated counterclockwise to such a position that groove 10 on the ring may receive cutting wire B in such a manner that the wire may be conveniently attached to pin 12. The rotatable wire adjusting ring 6 may now conveniently continue to be rotated counterclockwise on sleeve 4 until wire B is under proper tension. It may be seen from Figure 3 that rotatable ring 6 may be freely rotated counterclockwise, since wedge roller 20, which is intended to act as a wedge, is merely moved slightly lower and to the right of its normal position at rest toward the enlarged portion of the groove or space in the sleeve and spring 18 is only slightly compressed by this action. However if the operator should release pressure on lever 8 so that the tension in the wire B would tend to cause clockwise rotation of the wire holder adjusting ring, wedge roller 20 would tend to move upward and to the left under the action of spring 18 and wedge itself between sleeve 4 and the internal bore surface of the wire holder adjusting ring. This action would look the rotatable wire holder adjusting ring in position and prevent Wire B from entirely losing its tension.

The above specifically described embodiment mentioned should be considered as illustrative only, as obviously changes may be made thereon without departing from the spirit or scope of my invention, the extent of which is indicated in the appended claims. For example, rim 14 may be omitted and pin 16 fastened only at its inner side to sleeve 4 and retaining clamps or springs used to hold the wire holder adjusting ring in position relative to the retaining ring. It may be further noted that it is possible to adjust two parallel cutter wires simultaneously by merely providing an additional rotatable wire holder adjusting ring (such as ring 6) on the left side of retaining ring 2, provided of course, that fixed retaining ring 2 is provided with an extension to the left of parts that are substantially opposite hand duplicates of the parts shown for use with the right-hand side of the fixed ring. In this event, a separate lever such as lever 8 may be used for the added rotatable ring or a forked member may be used to provide a single lever that may be attached to two spaced apart rotatable rings to rotate them simultaneously.

Having thus described the improvement, I claim as my invention and desire to patent under the above specification the following:

A wire tensioning tool for use in tensioning cutter wire comprising a fixed retaining ring and a rotatable wire holder adjusting ring having an internal co-aXial sleeve extending through the bore of both of said rings so that they are adapted to be supported by an internal support such as a shaft through'the sleeve, said wire holder adjusting ring having a means adapted to hold a Wire to be tensioned, to its outside surface, said sleeve having an eccentric body portion coextensive with the wire holder adjusting ring, a wedge roller disposed between the eccentric surface of said sleeve and the inside of said rotatable wire holder adjusting ring to prevent rotary References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 279,032 Smith June 5, 1883 i 531,612 Emery Dec. 25, 1894 1,067,641 Butter July 15, 1913 2,060,249 Scott Nov. 10, 1936 

